India was all out for 364, opening the door for England to stage a dramatic check cricket win at Headingley on remaining day.
One other India lower-order collapse gave England a combating likelihood of an exhilarating cricket victory within the first Take a look at at Headingley, with the hosts 21-0 of their second innings on the shut of play on day 4, chasing 371 to win.
Josh Tongue, simply as he did within the first innings, got here to the fore when seeing off the Indian tail, with three wickets in 4 balls serving to make sure the vacationers misplaced their remaining six second-innings wickets for 31 runs on Monday.
The collapse, which noticed India all out for 364, gave the damaging Jasprit Bumrah the prospect to assault England earlier than shut of play. However neither opener, Zak Crawley nor Ben Duckett, seemed troubled as they repelled the Indian assault till stumps.
Reaching 371 could be England’s second-highest profitable Take a look at run chase in opposition to India, and the second-highest at Headingley, greater than the Ben Stokes-inspired heroics on the identical floor in opposition to Australia in 2019.
“To get all of them out and never lose a wicket within the final half hour, Ducky [Ben Duckett] and Zak [Crawley] batted very well,” Tongue advised Sky Sports activities.
“The primary session we batted very well, I assumed we had been unfortunate. The message was to hit the pitch as laborious as we are able to. It flattened out within the second session. We simply needed to keep affected person.”
Resuming day 4 on 90-2 of their second innings, with a lead of 96 runs, India captain Shubman Gill, who made his highest Take a look at rating within the first innings, chopped onto his stumps to fall for eight to Brydon Carse.
England sensed a chance, having dragged themselves again into the Take a look at on Sunday. However Rishabh Pant’s 195-run middle-order partnership with KL Rahul swung the momentum again in India’s favour.
Rahul, Pant rally
The usually box-office Pant began his innings fairly conservatively, joyful to look at on as Rahul moved easily to his century, his ninth in Exams, eight of which have come abroad.
After smashing two sixes in three balls after lunch, nonetheless, Pant hit the accelerator and introduced out his sometimes flamboyant photographs to all corners of the bottom, along with his hundred which means, for the primary time, that there have been 5 India centuries scored in a single Take a look at match.
Pant ultimately tried one shot too many, caught chasing one other six on the boundary by Crawley for 118 earlier than Rahul fell shortly after tea for 137, once more chopping onto the stumps off the bowling of Carse.
Then got here the Tongue-inspired collapse, because the quick bowler took three wickets and the catch that introduced in regards to the finish of India’s innings because the touring facet, having misplaced their remaining six first-innings wickets for twenty-four runs, fell aside once more.
Bumrah, the quantity one-ranked Take a look at bowler on the planet, who took 5 wickets within the first innings, instantly grabbed the ball however acquired little or no pleasure as Crawley remained unbeaten on 12, whereas Duckett will return for a tantalising Tuesday on 9.
The chances are stacked in opposition to England on the ultimate day, however there’s hope at the very least. In 59 Exams when defending totals of over 350, India have solely misplaced as soon as. That, nonetheless, was in opposition to England in 2022.
“Somebody’s acquired to win tomorrow; it is going to be an fascinating day,” Rahul advised Sky Sports activities.
“The wicket is just not as straightforward as the primary innings. They gained’t discover it as straightforward to hit the ball on the rise. Even when they get a giant partnership, if we get a few wickets, we’ll be proper within the recreation.”
